Conventional tool-rests, for use with lathes or other wood turning apparatus, typically comprise a pillar having a single horizontally projecting arm for supporting a cutting tool. The projecting arm provides a fulcrum for the shaft of the cutting tool whose forward end is held in place by the turner's leading hand, the cutting force being prevented from snatching the tool-tip downwards by means of a counter-leverage applied to the handle of the tool gripped by the turner's other hand.
It is essential that support is provided as close as possible to the surface of the work-piece so that the shaft of the cutting tool is not subjected to an excessive torque and so that optimum control over the tool tip is maintained. Therefore, when performing a bowl hollowing operation, the pillar is preferably rotatable about a vertical axis through its centre to allow the support arm (which may be arcuate in form) to project into the concave interior of the bowl being formed.
However, a significant drawback of such a tool-rest is that, in order to hold a tool in place whilst forming the interior of a bowl, the turner is forced to place his leading hand inside the rotating bowl, an obvious safety hazard.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a tool-rest which overcomes the above-mentioned drawback of existing support arrangements.